The Aug. 17 Hellertown Council virtual meeting brought sad but not entirely unexpected news that the borough’s annual Spirit Parade will not be held this October due to COVID-related concerns.

The parade joins several other popular Hellertown events which have suffered either cancellation or significant scaling-back, such as the Music in the Park series, due to Governor Tom Wolf’s updated restrictions capping outdoor gatherings at 250 people. Other casualties of the council’s decision included several private gatherings at borough parks for which permits had already been granted.

Regarding the decision to cancel the parade, which was also missed last year due to heavy rains, Mayor David Heintzelman said, “if we’re going to follow the guidelines, you and I both know we run between 1,000 and 1,500 people in the parade itself, (we) 100 percent must cancel. That doesn’t mean I want to. The Borough has no choice.” Council members and other borough officials largely agreed with his assessment and voted overwhelmingly to shelve the event until 2021.

However, council affirmed that the borough’s other autumn tradition, Trick or Treat, is still on – for now. The event is tentatively scheduled for Halloween evening itself, which falls on a Saturday. Council President Thomas Rieger suggested folks simply leave candy in a dish at the bottom of their front porch steps to enable physical distancing. “Barring a lockdown order from somebody higher up,” it can be held safely, he said, adding that the borough might create an official document with guidelines for residents who choose to participate.

In other news, Erica Shorb joined the meeting once again to provide an update on her Art Walk project, which is now scheduled to run from Sept. 19 to Oct. 18 at Borough Authority Park. She asked the council to greenlight an Opening Day celebration and proposed inviting musicians and dance students to perform. Shorb said she has been in touch with local singer-songwriters, bands, and other performing artists.

Borough Manager Cathy Hartranft raised some concerns about crowd size and behavior, suggesting keeping the inaugural edition restricted to the Art Walk itself. Council member Matt Marcincin agreed, noting that a lack of electrical access could also be an issue for musicians and other performers. Rieger said he was concerned in general about COVID cases spiking in other regions as they reopen, not wanting to make the same mistakes here. Council member Earl Hill agreed, saying “I’d really like to have (large outdoor events), but this isn’t the year to do it.”

Shorb floated some additional ideas, such as having food trucks in and around the event, although that idea was also shot down for this year’s edition. Ultimately, Rieger suggested this fall act as a “foundation year,” as he called it, for the Art Walk, while next year’s project could potentially include more features provided COVID is no longer a serious concern. “You’ll have three pages worth of phenomenal ideas for next year’s Art Walk.”